Houston Relocation Professionals (HRP) recently held their spring educational event, which featured Reid Ryan, Houston Astros president of business operations.

As the son of legendary baseball great Nolan Ryan, he shared his personal stories of life on the road as a child, and how that experience has helped to shape his leadership style today.

Ryan began by sharing some of his earliest childhood memories of traveling around the country in support of his father's Major League Baseball career. He said that oftentimes he related the most to children who had parents in the military or who worked within the energy business, because, like him, they were also traveling all the time.

"I literally grew up always on the road, and I tell everybody that it was an awesome experience, because I got to meet new friends everywhere I went," said Ryan.

Even when his father signed with the Astros in 1980, Ryan said that coming back to Houston and living in his father's hometown of Alvin was still far from a normal life.

"We continued to travel with him. I would check out of school, and I would go to spring training and stay two months with him. I went to school in Cocoa Beach, and then in Kissimmee, and so my friends ended up being the other teammates' kids," said Ryan.

He said that by the time he went to college that he had met a lot of different people, and could mix well in social situations. He said that he was able to see the various strengths that different people brought to the table, which really helped him later in his career.

As for his lessons from life on the road, Ryan said that one of the most important things he learned was to embrace change.

"I think so many times in life people are afraid of change. Every day you are either moving forward or you're moving backward. There is no standing still. Life is always evolving, and so the one thing that I've tried to do in my professional career is embrace change," Ryan said.

He added that his ability to meet so many people over the years really expanded his horizons.

"I really truly believe that you can learn something from everybody you meet. Every person in this room has a completely different life experience. We are so much better as individuals, and especially as a team, when we all have a different world perspective and worldview. That's something we've tried to do with the Astros," stated Ryan.

He then urged everyone to "get in the game," and take advantage of the opportunities that come their way. He said that people should look at changing jobs or careers, or moving to a new city as a positive experience.

"You have a great opportunity to go out, and try to meet new people, and expand yourself," Ryan said. "That's really what we've tried to do with the Astros, and these are lessons that have made me a better manager."

He said that the Astros has one of the most diverse workforces in all of baseball, which he thinks reflects the Houston community, because they are a group of people who work hard and give maximum effort all the time.

"That's why Houston is such and international business hub, because it's not what family you were born into here, or where you went to school; it's are you willing to work hard and add to this community," said Ryan.

In terms of relocation, Ryan said that he understands how hard it is, because the Astros move people around all the time. They currently have about 250 players in their system, with several teams around the country and two in Venezuela.

As for moving back to Houston again four years ago, Ryan said that his children didn't take the news very well when he first told them, but that they have had a big change of heart since then.

"When I told my daughters and my son that we were moving to Houston four years ago, they cried. It was like the end of their life," Ryan said. "Now, it's like the greatest thing ever, and my daughter says if you ever get fired, we're staying here, and you can go wherever you want."

HRP is a Recognized Regional Group for Worldwide ERC (Employee Relocation Council).

Its mission is to provide meaningful educational, networking, and community outreach opportunities for professionals supporting workforce mobility.

Michelle Sandlin is a writer, journalist and relocation industry expert. Her work is frequently featured in Worldwide ERC's Mobility magazine, and in various business and industry related publications and corporate blogs. Follow her on Facebook: www.facebook.com/TheMichelleSandlin and on Twitter: @MichelleSandlin. Also visit "On the Move" at blog.chron.com/onthemove.